Abraham, a Man of challenge, Faith, Promise
A Man of Covenant
Reading: Genesis 15:7ff
"...he believed in the LORD, and He accounted it to him for righteousness." As we trace the life of Abram, we can clearly see growth in his comprehension of and faith in God. There are times when no matter what, God just seems to be there and is talking to Abram, then there are periods when the voice of God seems to go quite, and Abram is to some degree, left to workout what has been spoken to him. There are times when God builds up protective hedges around Abram, then challenges him to launch out from the fold and take the land. Should Abram not rise to the challenge, them God simply takes the hedge away. Abram then discovers that under God, that the only sure defense is the one that the LORD Himself is telling you to adopt, in many cases that is; "Attack is the best form of Defense."
We also find that the time when Abram has the least trouble in comprehending the voice and purpose of his LORD, is when there has been a rising of faith within him. Abram, it would seem, was still contemplating his rescue of Lot and his encounter with Melchizedek. This produced elation and fear at the same time within him. The elation that under God he had been able to secure the release of Lot, the elation of the encounter with Melchizedek, the elation of knowing that God was with him, yet at the same time for virtually the selfsame reasons, fear. We stand elated when God speaks through us and uses us, yet at the same time there is something of the awesomeness of God that stirs a sense of fear, that this is the Holy, Righteous and Just Lord God Almighty.
Something within him stirs him to believe, and in that moment God confirms to Abram, who He is, along with His historical commitment, Present and Future commitment to Abram and his decedents. (v7) Abram is possibly feeling the sense of being crushed at what has happened and what is to happen, but at the same time Abram is rising in faith, and it is in that rising that God reveals Himself again. He said to Abram; "I am YEH—HO—YAW, I am the Self-existent, Eternal, most vehement, ardent God, who feels all in the strongest possible terms. It is I, and I alone who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans, and I did this to give you this land to inherit it."
Abrams response to this revelation of God is two fold, first of all he says; "Lord GOD." Notice the use of Capitol letters, Lord, ADONAY, Sovereign, Controller, Master. It is a title as well as a position in Abrams life; I will call you ADONAY because that is what You are (Lord), and what You are in my life (Lord). Yet he does not stop there, he does not stop there because it is possible to have something, which is lord, yet it is not God. To what ever we are indebted to and serve, that is a lord, but that in itself does not make it God. I am able to say that because the title Lord holds the meaning of Controller and Master, and if we allow anything to take Control or indeed Master any part of our lives, then it becomes Lord of it, but it is not God. It does not have the creative power to bring life, light and liberty; it can only have the destructive force of bondage, death and darkness. It cannot have the embracing love that feeds and nurtures; it can only have the consuming lust of taking want.
Abram had seen and tasted the effects of many lords in his former home of Ur. He had seen these lords take over people and the whole land, until the whole land was consumed in feeding and serving them. All the time the people where being plunged into greater and greater depths of darkness as they were drawn further and further away from the hope of life and light. Abram not only says ADONAY, he calls ADONAY, GOD. Creator of Light and life, giver of eternal life, God who will be, because He will be, I Am that I Am, I will be what I will be, I will become what I will become, I will create what I will create, I will exist because I will exist. It will come to pass because I will it to come to pass. No lord can do that, only God. No lord can set you free to be what you can be, only God can do that. Lordship binds you too, it Controls, it Masters you, and if all you have is LORDSHIP, then that is all you have, a binding Controller, a gripping task Master. But God liberates you by bring you to the place of being what you where created to be, a child of God, who is holding Dominion, firstly over self, secondly over this created earth and in that there is liberty. YEH—HO—VAW is seeking to be more that a lord, He is seeking to be more than a controlling master, He is seeking to be your creative liberator, He is seeking to be your God.
The second part of Abram’s response is the question; "how shall I know that I will inherit it?" Do not be afraid, is to pester God about His promises. He said it, so He is going to fulfill it. "The Lord is no slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us...." (2.Peter.3:8) God You have said this is for me, so how do I get it. How am I to know that I will get it? Notice how that God meets Abram where he is and to the degree of Abram’s understanding with the aim of stretching that understanding. So God uses something out of the culture and understanding of Abram.
"In ancient times men sometimes ratified an agreement or covenant by passing between the parts of sacrifical animal. This "CUTTING OF THE COVENANT" was not in itself a sacrifice. Rather, it was a sacred ceremony by which the men declared their solemn purpose to keep the agreement. some bible students have pointed out that in this instance, only one symbolic representative of the contracting parties - the lamp of fire , (A.V.), or "Flaming Torch", symbol of Jehovah - passes between the halves of the animals. In other words, the covenant in this case was to be kept from the Godward side alone. Only the Lord Himself could fulfill this promise. He would make Abram’s descendents a numerous as the stars and give them a great land,..." (Wycliffe Bible Commentary)
Notice in verse 11, that Abram chased off the scavengers who were trying to rob him of what God was about to reveal and do. There is the need to chase off, to drive off that and what ever is attempting to consume what God has promised for His people.
